Bernardo Bellotto

THE FORTRESS OF KONIGSTEIN

Konigstein, meaning literally 'king's stone', is located approximately 25 miles south-east Of the city of Dresden, in eastern Germany.

During its 800-year history, this impressive rocky outcrop has served as castle, a monastery, a fortress, a state prison, a prisoner-of-war camp, a military hospital and a safehouse for royal treasures.

Overlooking the River Elbe, in area of outstanding natural beauty known as 'Saxon Switzerland', the fortress remains largely unchanged to this day. In 1756. Bernardo Bellotto's most prestigious patron, the Elector of Saxony, commissioned him to paint five large-scale views of Konigstein. The historic significance of the fortress was reintorced in the elector's own lifetime, for it was here that he and his sons barricaded themselves at the onset of the Seven Years' War, before taking flight to Warsaw.

Bellotto's approach to the task was unprecedented: he obtained special permission to make drawings in situ and produced monumental paintings of the fortress, captured from both outside and within the forbidding walls. Bellotto clearly recognised the site's dramatic possibilities and relished the opportunity of setting this majestic stronghold in its breath-taking surroundings, silhouetting its craggy, angular form against an open sky.

INTRODUCTION

Bernardo Bellotto (1722-1780) was born in Venice, the nephew and talented pupil of the celebrated view painter Canaletto (1697-1768). From him, Bellotto learned perspective and mastered the use of the camera obscura (pinhole camera) to help compose his views.

Over time he became equally adept at evoking the varying textures, light and atmospheric effects of Venice. Bellotto was later employed at the courts of Dresden, Vienna, Munich and Warsaw, where he created highly original views that are today considered his greatest achievements.

Arriving In Dresden in 1747, Bellotto entered the service of Frederick Augustus II (1696-17/63), Elector of Saxony and King of Poland (as Augustus 111).

Bellotto was the highest paid artist at court and embarked upon the most productive decade of his career, painting 30 views of Dresden and ts surroundings for the elector fortress of Konigstein originally formed part of that His views of the series but never reached their royal patron due to the escalation of Seven Years' War (1756-63). Instead, they were imported into Britain, probably during Bellotto's lifetime.

Following the National Gallery's acquisition of one of these views in 2017, they are reunited here for the first time since the eighteenth century.

The Fortress of Konigstein: Courtyard with the Magdalenenburg 1756-8

Bathed in sunlight, the fortress courtyard is replete with quiet civilian life

Only glimpses of the distant landscape reminds us that this island of civilisation floats above the rolling Saxon countryside.

The elegant structure of the Magdalenenburg, a Renaissance-style castle built in the seventeenth century for courtly festivities, dominates the composition. It was home to 60,000-gallon wine cask, the location of which is indicated by three round ventilation points visible at the far right.

Bellotto offers vignettes of daily life at the fortress: women chatter as they lay out their laundry on lush green grass and makeshift lines, and lady with a parasol, accompanied by two gentlemen, admires the intricate stone portal. Sharp shadows demonstrate Bellotto's sophisticated control of light a mystery why he decided to paint the shadow by the woman and soldier the foreground falling the wrong direction.

The Fortress of Konigstein from the South-West 1756-8

Here Bellotto gives us an entirely different perspective of Konigstein, not least because very little can be seen of the buildings within an impenetrable bank of sheer, sandstone walls makes life inside the fortress seem distant and inaccessible, and our view of the site IS further obscured by two trees

The 'Horn' promontory marking the far-left corner is also visible on the right side of Bellotto's view from the north. As the fortress rises from the brow of the hill, it forms a looming presence the escarpment, marking a strong diagonal across the canvas that draws our eve along the receding, sun-bleached walls.

By depicting Konigstein this oblique angle, Bellotto demonstrates his skill and originality conceiving sophisticated compositions with bold foreshortenings. regimented precision with which he nas painted the fortification odds with his loose handling of the trees' foliage and the fluffy white clouds above.

The Fortress of Konigstein from the North-West 1756-8

Unlike Bellotto's other views of the fortress, this sweeping panorama is taken from a hillock some distance away. Konigstein is depicted as a towering mass of rock rising above the surrounding expanse of plains and densely wooded valleys. Its bulk is balanced by the neighbouring sandstone peak, Lilienstein, and accentuated by the vast, atmospheric sky

Dramatic shafts of light escape from clustered clouds, casting dappled shadows verdant, rolling landscape below. The countryside around the fortress is a hive of human activity: shepherds herd their flocks low-lying slopes laden cart winds its way path to its entrance.

The dramatic of the fortress itself acts as a theatrical backdrop for a group of pastoral figures and animals, illuminated pool of natural light on their stage' in the foreground

The Fortress of Konigstein from the North 1756-8

Bellotto's view taken from the edge of a sandy track that meanders through the valley. The imposing structure of the fortress, with its jagged profile, is exaggerated by his low vantage point and proximity to the site.

The artist delights in depicting different textures: from the crumbling plasterwork of the fortress walls, picked out with meticulous precision, to vegetation surrounding it, captured in spirited brushstrokes.

Tiny soldiers, created with ust a few dots of paint, stand quard high on the ramparts. To the right a shepherd leans wearily against cow, resting at the end of a long day the sun, while others relax under a tree in the foreground As with his other exterior views of the fortress, Bellotto borrowed these motifs from engravings after works by Nicolaes Berchem (1620-83) and Francesco Zuccarelli (1702-88).

The Fortress of Konigstein: Courtyard with the Brunnenhaus 1756-8

Bellotto displays his mastery of perspective in this carefully constructed view, with the foreshortened buildings and sharply receding path indicating his use of a camera obscura. The spiny row of chimneys on the rooftop of the Old Barracks and the mirroring, tree-lined pathway draw our eye towards the Brunnennaus. This housed the well that provided the fortress with fresh water.

Fronting this magnificent scene is the crumbling perimeter of a walled garden, its flaking plaster and underlying brickwork rendered in miniaturist detail. Its state of disrepair offers a stark contrast to the manicured topiary and colourful rose beds beyond, where a stooping gardener can be seen tending to the plants.

Outside, a senior military figure is followed by a man traditional Polish dress, a common sight at the court of Augustus III, who was both Elector of Saxony and King of Poland.

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